Inconvenient Arangements
by silver topaz
Summary: Gaara is now 20 and & been told to find a wife or his position as Kazekage will be compromised. Hyuuga Saturn is a Leaf nin with a love for fun & lack of punctuality. The 2 have been betrothed & as life together starts, can they come to an understanding?
1. Chapter 1

A/N This is my first story...pretty much ever. It's Gaara/Saturn (OC).

In the story Gaara is Kazekage and at the age of 20.

Hyuuga Saturn is an OC of mine- she's second in line to the Hyuuga, after Hinata. (Hanabi died of some disease on a mission gone wrong.)

Saturn is 19, a few years younger than Hinata (married to Naruto- Hokage).  
She has long chocolate brown hair with a few blonde streaks, reaches her waist and is usually kept up in ponytail. Has a side fringe.  
Her mother was Hyuuga but her father was not, so she has milky brown eyes.  
Has problems with punctuality and sometimes gets into mischief. Overall, a curious person.

Please forgive any incorrectness in character information and OOCness that may and probably will appear.

Reviews would be great, harsh or not, constructive criticism is more than welcome.

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'You idiot,' she said through gasping breaths, 'if the chidori can hurt you, the rasengen will kill you.'

She struggled to stay standing, but lost the fight, falling to the ground.

Gaara stared at her in shock. This woman, who was nothing more to him than an inconvenience in an arranged marriage, had placed her life in front of him.

He had treated her with nothing but indifference, yet here she was, suffering where he should be.

'Be more wise *gasp* Kazekage-sama,' she said, snapping him out of his thoughts, 'you have a village to watch over.'

He stood frozen in place, unable to will his body into action, as he watched consciousness free itself from her.

That had been a fortnight ago, and still she lay on the hospital bed devoid of consciousness.

The leaf nin's attack that she had then blocked lay on a chair the other side of her bed, exhausted and sleeping.

Naruto had not left her once since she came off the operating table, and Gaara somewhat admired this loyalty to his friend.

Getting tired of looking at the same scene he had been in all day, he decided to move out onto the rooftop to watch the sky.

The cool night air embraced him as he stepped through the doorway leading to the outside world.

Sitting at the peak, Gaara stared up at the full moon and lost himself in the regrets of a fatal misunderstanding...what had started- those two months ago.

-------------------------------------------------------------oOo-------------------------------------------------------------

THREE MONTHS AGO

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'And so the council has come the decision to abide by the rules, laid out many years ago by our first great ruler.'

Kankuro cocked an eyebrow at this announcement and looked over to see his younger brothers face showing no emotion or any sign of interest.

'And what has all this got to do with Gaara?' Temari asked, now curious as to the expressions held by the counseling committee.

'Do tell' Kankuro agreed.

'The law states that the ruler of this city, the Kazekage, must be married by the age of twenty-one to remain in power,' the lead spokesperson replied without the smallest inkling of what was to come.

'Gaara has just turned twenty,' Temari stated, 'Why do you bother us with this now? We have a whole year to prepare for that.'

'So one would think,' one of the village elders interjected, 'but the rules clearly states that he is to be married by his twenty-first birthday, therefore calling for a wedding and a bride before he is in truth, twenty-one.'

'What?!' Temari nearly shouted, 'we don't have time to find some girl, plan the wedding, and carry through with it in less than a year!'

'Yeah,' Kankuro added, 'who's gonna marry a complete stranger?'

"Especially one of high power! Don't you know power and such authority can be intimidating?!'

As Temari continued to argue with the committee Gaara sat there, unfazed and unaffected about this sudden declaration.

...'No! He won't go through with it. AND THAT'S FINAL!!' Several minutes later Temari was still fighting with the council while Kankuro had opted for just sitting and watching the display of fireworks.

'He MUST if he is to remain Kazekage,' the elder who had earlier been so composed was now at the end of his thread, and ready to explode.

'That's ridiculous. No one needs t- 'Temari was cut short by something Gaara said.

'Sorry my Lord, what is that you said?'

Kankuro looked to his younger brother with an eyebrow raised wondering why the entertainment had stopped.

'I said; I'll do it.'

The older of his siblings was left speechless and rather resembling a stunned mullet, while strangely his brother looked amused.

'Is there anything else I need to know?' the Kazekage's voice filled the quiet room.

'Ah yes,' the lead spokesperson cleared his throat and began.

'The marriage has come at a time when we need to secure our alliance with the Leaf. We have spoken to the Hokage and have come to a decision. That she who you marry, be of rank in Konoha.'

'And who would that be?' Temari asked, finding her voice again. 'The Hokage has no family, so to speak, other than his wife and she is of the Hyuuga clan, leaving no others of importance in availability.'

'That has also been decided. The head of the Hyuuga clan has offered his niece, Hyuuga Saturn- second female to Hinata, to be wed.'

'You'd think he'd get a little more choice in who he married,' Kankuro mumbled under his breath, yet heard by everyone in the room earning a few grunts of agreement.

'The wedding is to be three months from now, on a Saturday. Hyuuga Saturn will be coming to live here from next week so everyone can be acquainted before the event.'

The Kazekage nodded his agreement and with the the meeting was adjourned.

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'Saturn,' a stern voice called from within the office she was currently waiting before.

'Come in now,' That same voice called again.

Hesitating at the handle, she wondered if she should run- but decided against it on the grounds that it would irritate the owner of the voice even more so than she already had done

She already knew why she had been called here. It was because of the markets.

As a Hyuuga, she was expected to be neat, formal, and punctual. The first two she had easily kept, but it was the third that was the cause of her downfall.

Earlier that day she had accompanied one of the kitchen maids, Hana, to the markets.

She had lost herself in the splendor of it all; the colours and sounds so enchanted her as she wandered through the streets.

Soaking it all in she had lost track of time. When she finally noticed how high the sun had risen she went in search to find Hana, flustered and upset because Saturn had pulled the disappearing act on her yet again in a crowded part of town.

By the time the two woman had reached the compound they were late for lunch.

Usually this wouldn't bother Saturn, but today she had been instructed to dine with the head family, and to be late or disobey was highly risky.

Mentally preparing herself for the punishment that lay ahead, she opened the door and quietly slipped in, closing it in her wake.

'Come. Sit down,' the head of the Hyuuga instructed, not once bothering to look up from his papers.

She bowed respectfully- even though he was not looking directly at her, she knew he could see her.

So she fell into the roll of a Hyuuga delicacy (as she thought of it), and gracefully took her seat.

After waiting a few minutes his eyes moved from the scrolls to her, mentally scoffing at the nervousness he saw.

'I presume you know why you're here'...

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'Stupid weeds'........'stupid dirty fingernails'...............'stupid dust..neh! It's stuck to my lipgloss!'

Saturn had been listening to her genin team complain all morning.

Their current mission was pulling weeds and replanting some herbs. The female genin of the team was none too thrilled- to say the least.

'Ayane you're doing it all wrong, you do it like this....that way you don't fling dirt everywhere.'

Damon, the genius of the team, went on to show Ayane how to properly uproot the weeds and prepare the soil for placing the herbs in later.

'Ohh, so that's how you do it.'

Watching the two children work, she vaguely wondered how Daisuke was doing at the medical clinic.

He was the fourth member of their team and today he was being shown around the hospital and learning some basic medical jutsu. If she had the freedom to do so, she would have shrugged this mission off on to someone else so she could go watch how he took to it.

But freedom was something she didn't have right now.

Lord Hiashi had taken that away the afternoon she had showed up two hours late for lunch, now she was living under something akin to house arrest.

As soon as her team finished this mission she was to go home a prepare for a dinner she had to attend that night with the Hokage, Hinata, and Lord Hiashi.

If she was on time the house arrest would be lifted.

Getting down on her hands and knees, she instructed Ayane and Damon how to plant the herbs while making herself useful by helping.

Might as well get it over and done with.

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Three hours later Saturn stood in front of her mirror inspecting the work she had done. Somewhat displeased with the results.

The yakuta and obi were the easy parts, it was the hair and make-up that she was unsure about.

Scrutinizing her reflection she failed to hear someone knock and enter the room.

Only when she saw a familiar shape in the mirror did she realize she was not alone.

"Hana!" she cried, making the young woman jump. "How does this look? Do you think it'll pass Lord Hiashi's scrutiny?"

Seeing her friend's hesitation to reply she sighed and fell ungraciously into the nearest seat before looking up at Hana again.

"It's the hair isn't it? It look too much like a birds nest rather than a bun," she continued, answering her own question in place of Hana.

Had she not looked back down, she would have seen her faithful servant nearly failing to contain her laughter.

Coming up behind Saturn her fingers paused in mid air before asking permission to render the hairstyle.

"May I?" she asked, all timidity gone in the face of her master's distressed countenance.

Receiving a wave from the dishearted Hyuuga, she set to work, interpreting it as a yes.

After smoothing out a few hairs here and there, and rearranging a few pins she was done.

"There!" she exclaimed. "Now stop sulking, take a look, and get moving or you'll be under house arrest for the rest of your life."

The though of being watched twenty-four/seven for much longer so disgusted Saturn that she ran out the door without waiting to see the changes Hana had made.

Shouting a work of thanks over her shoulder she rushed down the halls and over to the main house, barely making it without tripping over the long hem of her yakuta several times.

Safely making it over to the veranda of the main house, she took a moment to catch her breath and check for any dirt she may have caused to land on her clothing.

Satisfied that she had not soiled the cloth, she walked through the front screens into the library to meet with Lord Hiashi before her cousin and husband's arrival.

Finding herself immediately under a harsh gaze she straightened up and smoothed the wrinkles out of her skirt.

Lifting her chin in a defiant gesture she dared him to disagree, only to be greatly relieved when her uncle nodded in approval. Such a display of headstrong attitude would not be welcomed, nor tolerated from someone of her position.

The doorbell rang, breaking the silence that ensued the challenge she had mistakenly shown for all to see.

It was then that Lord Hiashi interrupted her musings. "Shall we?"


	2. Chapter 2

Saturn stared at the body of water before her.  
As dazzling as it was with the starts of the night sky reflecting in it, her mind was elsewhere.  
'You are to marry the Kazekage.'  
The words echoed in her mind, swimming round and round like a fish in a bowl.  
'You leave in three days.'  
The sound of them hurt head.  
She was to be married to a complete stranger. Sure she knew about him, who didn't, but she didn't know him and that in itself was terrifying.  
Had it been under different circumstances, she would of objected or even refused, but everyone she loved wanted this and she couldn't bring herself to go against them.  
Pushing herself up from her place beside the pond she wondered back over to the porch outside her room. She needed to gather the belongings she would take.

--

"You promised you wouldn't leave us!"  
Saturn dodged another round of kunai thrown at her.  
"Stop it Damon," Ayane sobbed, "you're going to kill her." Out of her three genin the young girl was the most effected by news of their sensei leaving. Her sobbing quite different from Damon, a reaction of sulking, and Daisuke, who had sudden urge to land her in hospital.  
"Why should I care?" Damon growled, "it is better to die than to break a promise. That's what you said!" He was again directing his upset fury back at Saturn.  
'True, I did say that.'  
"You're right," she agreed, "but I was talking under different circumstances. I was given no choice in this situation, and while my pride is hurt, my honor is still intact."  
Damon stopped pursuing her for a moment and considered this. Finally she saw his stance relax and watched as he put his weapons away. Taking note of his still tense frame, she also relaxed but kept her guard. It'd do no good to obtain an injury now.  
"I don't see why they picked you! There's plenty of other girls out there he could marry," he spat. Referring to the Kazekage as 'he' or 'him' had long been a habit of Damon's and never by name, though why was a mystery even to Saturn - his most adored teacher.  
"Why doesn't he marry someone from his own country? They could have picked a girl more qualified as a lady. You can't even shop without stumbling upon the most hideous thing in store, let alone look ladylike in it, or anything for that matter."  
Saturn didn't mind him asking questions, but everything he said sounded more like insults than anything else.  
"Okay!" she finally interrupted, "I can't help you solve those issues Damon, but while I'm here I can still train you to be informed and well trained shinobi. So I want you to get your backside up off the ground, and five laps around the field.  
"All of you," she leveled a look at them to see they understood and smiled, "now, see if you can beat me to finish - you have today and tomorrow to kick my ass, or the other way around."  
"This is the Start and Finish line." She drew a line in the dirt with a stick, a devious grin creeping onto her face.  
Little to her knowlegde, her students knew exactly what that grin meant and were off before she could say 'go'.  
Sensei was gonna cheat, why shouldn't they? Laughing at their insight she set off double speed, catching up to them with no trouble.

--

Saturn opened the front door and sighed, a laugh tickling at her throat. Her genin team had ganged up on her, tackling her to the ground and sitting on top of her, demanding her to declare them the winners of the all out war they'd fought on the training field. Threatening to give her hair a new look if she didn't.  
She breathed deeply, taking in the scent of the Sakura tree outside her room. The room itself was nearly bare, she had never owned much, but now with it all packed she realized just exactly how much that was.  
Her room was separate from the main house, just a little ways off to the side. She enjoyed having her own secluded place, a sanctum away from the busy path of life. This made her wonder what her living arrangements would be like in the Sand, surely she'd be near the Kazekage building but only after they were married, right.  
She sat back in her chair, her thoughts about life in Suna, and when they overwhelmed her, she stopped altogether.  
Mabey they would like her there, and mabey they would welcome her warmly.  
Or mabey they didn't want her at all, perhaps this marriage was all for the countries connections.  
Tired from her continuous wonderment, she carefully put the last of her belongings in the trunk, her mind not really on the job.  
Tucking in her last memory of her parents, a photo placed in a simple but suiting wooden frame, she shut the trunk. Realizing it wouldn't ge she frowned at it, when she spotted the book protruding from the back corner her face cleared.  
Not sure she remembered putting the book in Saturn gently took it out, careful not to ruin the pages as she eased it from it's tight spot. Turning it over in her hand the title read 'The Hawk and the Jewel', a romance novel her mother had liked that she had started reading, but never finished. Paging through the worn sheets under the cover she came across the missive signed by her late uncle to her mother.

Dearest little sister,  
On this day you start another year of life, growing more intelligent and beautiful with every passing moment.  
In this book there is the love between brother and sister that we share, and will share forevermore.  
Happy birthday,  
your loving brother, Hizashi.

Saturn recalled the look on Hinata's face with fondness as she showed her this message a few years ago. Hizashi had never been an outwardly affectionate man, but to his sister, his son, and his nieces he's always had a kind word.  
Finding once again the place where she had left off she turned the pages to it, smelling the old musty, but familiar and sweet scent of the paper.  
That night she finished reading what she had left in the warm glow of a candle. She gently tucked the book into an empty draw, she'd leave it behind for safe keeping. This room would always be hers, and the book would always be here waiting for her return.

--

"One more day." Saturn's brush had come to a rest on her dresser as she spoke to her reflection in the mirror. She wasn't really scared or excited about this move to the other country anymore, just resigned towards it. She was glad, for she would be taking her maid Hana with her; Hana might be her only company in Suna should it turn out she's not entirely welcome.  
A week ago she would have viewed a similar situation as an adventure, but now that it was upon her she realized the impact of such an agreement. She had to please the Kazekage. Gaining his approval would be most important because of her title and her name as a Hyuuga. Keeping in his good graces was a must, and falling from them was out of the question.  
The true nature of this arrangement she didn't know, and likely never would, but the pressure to follow it was great and she could only guess where to step.  
Light footsteps fell on the boards of the verandah, before stepping into her room. Saturn looked into the reflecting glass sure to see Hana and a little at loss when she was only herself.  
She turned in her chair to find her young genin students standing just inside the open door. Ayane had red puffy eyes, and the boys looked upset.  
"Iruka-sensei said you wouldn't be coming today," the young girl said, her voice thick.  
"That's right. Hiashi-sama wanted me to make absolute sure I was ready to go."  
"And are you?" Damon piped in.  
Not sure of the childrens visit, or how they found her here, she decided to come straight out and ask.  
"Daisuke, why are the three of you here, and how did you find me?"  
"We wanted to see you. We thought that you might leave without saying good-bye. But when we got here Lord Hiashi-sama told us you still had today left before leaving."  
Thinking that explained why they were upset, they still hadn't answered her other question.  
"And how did you know the directions to my room?"  
Smiling at their confused looks she explained, "most people don't think to look here."  
That Daisuke found amusement in this was obvious.  
"Well anyone who knows you like we do would pick this place immediately." However, his sly grin and Ayane's glare focused on him told Saturn otherwise.  
"Lord Hiashi-sama told us to find you here, we were hoping you'd spend the day with us. Hinata-san said she would also join us if you would."  
Knowing she would have fun Saturn accepted immediately. After dabbing a damp face-cloth over Ayane's eyes, she got the little girl to help her with her hair, and in no time they were on they're way.  
The foursome met Hinata in the coffee shop that sat in the middle of town and with little thought to their destination, soon found themselves in the markets.


End file.
